Toy air gun

ABSTRACT

A toy air gun featuring a magazine detachably mounted to the gun for sequentially urging pellets into a chamber contained therein, a hollow cylinder provided at the forward end thereof with a nozzle and being operatively mounted for sliding movement within the gun between a first position wherein the nozzle is positioned rearwardly of that part of the chamber into which the pellets are fed and a second position wherein the nozzle extends within the barrel of the gun, the cylinder normally being urged to its second position by a spring, a piston mounted within the cylinder, the inoperative position of a trigger mechanism formed as a part of the gun holding the piston in its rearward position, the piston normally being urged to move forwardly within the cylinder and a slide mechanism operatively mounted to the gun such that as the child moves same rearwardly, the cylinder is caused to move rearwardly eventually contacting and forcing the piston rearwardly to its cocked position, after which the cylinder returns to its forward position moving a pellet introduced from the magazine into the chamber of the gun, after which actuation of the trigger mechanism releases the piston to move forwardly within the cylinder forcing air normally contained therein outwardly through the nozzle causing the pellet to be propelled out of the barrel of the gun.

[ June 25, 1974 1 TOY AIR GUN [75] Inventors: Kenzo Akiyama; TakaoMatsumoto,

both of Tokyo, Japan [73] Assignee: Tomy Kogyo Co., Ltd., Tokyo,

Japan 1 221 Filed: Apr. 17, 1973 21 Appl. No.:351,972

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data May 31, 1972 Japan 47-54200 [52]US. Cl. 124/15, 124/53, 273/106 E [51] Int. Cl. F4111 11/00 [58] Fieldof Search 124/15, 30 R, 45, 50, 51 R, 124/53; 46/1 E; 42/18; 89/19 4;102/DIG. 5;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 357,170 2/1887 Bjerkness89/194 507,470 10/1893 Bailey l 124/15 2,818,056 12/1957 Martin 273/106E X 3,090,151 5/1963 Stewart et al.... 124/15 3,111,121 11/1963 Baggott124/15 3,649,020 3/1972 Hall 273/106 E FORElGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS456,096 ll/l936 Great Britain 124/15 736,305 6/1943 Germany 273/106 EPrimary ExaminerRichard C. Pinkham Assistant Examiner-R. T. StoufferAttorney, Agent, or Firm-Staas, Halsey & Gable [5 7] ABSTRACT A toy airgun featuring a magazine detachably mounted to the gun for sequentiallyurging pellets into a chamber contained therein, a hollow cylinderprovided at the forward end thereof with a nozzle and being operativelymounted for sliding movement within the gun between a first positionwherein the nozzle is positioned rearwardly of that part of the chamberinto which the pellets are fed and a second position wherein the nozzleextends within the barrel of the gun, the cylinder normally being urgedto its second position by a spring, a piston mounted within thecylinder, the inoperative position of a trigger mechanism formed as apart of the gun holding the piston in its rearward position, the pistonnormally being urged to move forwardly within the cylinder and a slidemechanism operatively mounted to the gun such that as the child movessame rearwardly, the cylinder is caused to move rearwardly eventuallycontacting and forcing the piston rearwardly to its cocked position,after which the cylinder returns to its forward position moving a pelletintroduced from the magazine into the chamber of the gun, after whichactuation of the trigger mechanism releases the piston to move forwardlywithin the cylinder forcing air normally contained therein outwardlythrough the nozzle causing the pellet to be propelled outof the barrelof the gun.

5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEI] JUN 2 5 I974 sum 3 nr 3 TOY AIRGUN BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generallyto toy guns wherein air is used to propel a harmless pellet. The presentinvention is characterized by its simplicity in construction,reliability of use and safety standards.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The toy air gun of the present invention isdesigned to stimulate the amusement of the child by permitting harmlesspellets contained within a detachably mounted magazine to beautomatically and sequentially raised into the chamber of the gun bypumping a slide action mechanism. Air, forced from a cylinder andaccelerated through a nozzle, is used to propel the harmless pellets.More specifically, a hollow cylinder provided at its forward end with anozzle is mounted for sliding movement within the gun casing. A hollowpiston, in turn, is slidably mounted within the cylinder. The hollowpiston is mounted about an elongated guide located within the gun casingand a spring is positioned between the guide and the piston for thepurpose of normally urging the piston forwardly within the cylinder. Asthe slide mechanism of the gun is pulled rearwardly by the child, thecylinder is forced backwardly into engagement with the piston which, inturn, is forced rearwardly until fixedly secured by the action of alatch mechanism formed as an integral part of the trigger mechanism. Asthe slide lever is released, the cylinder is urged forwardly by a springuntil the nozzle thereof contacts the uppermost pellet, which hasautomatically been delivered to the chamber, thereafter forcing sameinto the barrel of the gun. As the trigger is pulled, the piston lurchesforward expelling the air within the cylinder through the reducednozzle, at which time the resulting jet of air contacts the pelletpropelling same forwardly through the barrel. Not only does the presentinvention simplify construction and operation of the gun, but, moreover,insures that only a predetermined amount of air can be expelled from thecylinder thus insuring that the length of flight of the pellet which is,of course, of the utmost importance when considered from a safetystandpoint, is uniform. The pelletsare soft plastic and are providedrearwardly with hollow portions into which the jet of air is directed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevational view ofthe toy air gun illustrating the casing, barrel, trigger group, stock,slide mechanism and magazine;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of a portion of the toy air gun withpart of its casing removed so as to expose the position of the componentparts after a pellet has been propelled;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a portion of the toy air gun withpart of its casing removed illustrating the position of the componentparts as the slide mechanism is moved rearwardly causing the cylinder toengage and eventually move the piston rearwardly until the latter islocked by the latching mechanism of the trigger; I

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of a portion of the toy air gun withpart of its casing removed illustrating the position of the componentparts after the piston has 2 been cocked and the hollow cylinder anddischarge nozzle have moved forwardly under the force of a restoringspring, it being apparent that the nozzle is thus caused to move theuppermost pellet into position within the barrel, it further beingunderstood that actuation of the trigger mechanism causes the piston tomove forwardly eventually assuming the position illustrated in FIG. 2 atwhich time air within the cylinder is expelled through the dischargenozzle propelling the pellet through the barrel; and

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the uppermostportion of the magazine which is detachably mounted within a receivingsection mounted within the gun casing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The toy air gun is designatedgenerally by the reference numeral 10 in FIG. 1 and comprises a casing12 within which a barrel 14 is mounted. The stock 16 is appropriatelysecured to the casing 12. The reference numeral 18 designates generallythe trigger mechanism. Detachably mounted to the casing 12 is a magazine20 containing a plurality of harmless pellets 72 normally urged upwardlyby the: force of a spring. Mounted forwardly of the casing for pumpingaction is the slide mechanism 26. Movement of the slide mechanism 26rearwardly automatically cocks the gun while introducing the uppermostof the pellets 22 into the chamber, as explained in detail hereinafter.

Turning now to FIG. 2, the reference numeral 28 designates a hollow,plastic cylinder provided forwardly with a discharge nozzle 30 ofreduced dimension. When the gun is inoperative, the forward end of thenozzle 30 protrudes within the rearward end of the barre] 14. Thecylinder 28 is provided with a downwardly extending flange 32 having asupport 34 around which one end ofa spring 36 is secured. The other endof the spring 36 is secured to a support 38 formed as an integral partof the magazine receiving section 39 of thecasing 12. As will beapparent, the spring 36 normally urges the cylinder 28 forwardly to theposition illustrated in FIG. 2.

Operatively connected to the flange 32 of the cylinder 28 is a rod 40terminating at its forward end in a block 42 suitably secured within thewalls of the slide mechanism 26. As will be apparent, the slidemechanism 26 is provided with arms 44 extending within the slots 46formed within the casing 12'. Thus, as the slide mechanism 26 is pulledrearwardly by the child, the rod 40 moves rearwardly forcing thecylinder 28 to move rearwardly against the force of the spring 36.

A hollow, plastic piston 48 is slidably mounted within the interior ofthe cylinder 28 and terminates forwardly in a flat wall 50.,The hollowpiston 48 is mounted around a guide member 52 formed as an integral partof the casing 12. Interposed between the forward end of the guide 52 andthe wall 50 of the piston 48 is a spring 54 which normally urges thepiston 48 forward. The piston 48 is also provided with a dependingflange 56 provided with an opening 58, the purpose of which will bedescribed hereinafter.

The trigger mechanism or group 18 comprises a onepiece lever 60 mountedto rotate about an integrally fortned shaft 62 appropriately journalledwithin the casing 12. Opposite the trigger finger configuration in thelever 60 is a latching element 64. The spring 66 is secured at one endto a support 68 formed as a part of the lever 60 and at the other endthereof to a shaft 70 secured to the casing 12. In this manner, thelever 60 is urged to move counterclockwise about the shaft 62 so thatthe trigger configuration is moved forwardly within its associatedhousing.

As will now be apparent, and as illustrated in FIG. 3, as the slidelever 26 is moved rearwardly, the cylinder 28 moves rearwardly engagingthe piston 48 moving same rearwardly until the latching element 64 isforced through the opening 58 at which time the piston 48 is fixedlysecured in its cocked position. Note that the discharge nozzle 30 hasbeen withdrawn from the barrel l4.

Thereafter, and as illustrated in FIG. 4, the slide lever 26 is releasedat which time the force of the spring 36 causes the cylinder 28 toreturn to its original position. During the return movement of thedischarge nozzle 30, the uppermost positioned pellet 72 is movedforwardly into the rearward section of the barrel 14, the operation ofthe magazine and its receiving section 39 to be explained hereinafter.

Thereafter, the trigger mechanism 18 is actuated in the usual manner,rotating the latching element 64 clockwise so as to release the cockedpiston 48. The piston 48 lurches forward under the influence of thespring 54. Thus, air normally within the cylinder 28 is expelledtherefrom through the discharge nozzle 30. As will be apparent, therestricted area of the nozzle converges the air causing same to jetoutwardly.

Each of the pellets 72, which are made of any soft material, is providedrearwardly with a generally hollow cone-shaped portion 74 into which thejetting air is directed, thus providing maximum and uniform impact.

Turning now to FIG. 5, it is noted that the magazine receiving section39 is integrally fitted within the casing 12. In the top of the section39 is formed a generally cylindrical opening into which the rearward endof the barrel 14 extends, as seenfor example in FIG. 4. The dischargenozzle 30 of the cylinder 28 is free to slide within thecylindrical-opening of the receiving section 39.

A slot 76 is provided within the side wall of the section 39 while themagazine 20 is formed with complementary guides 78, thus permitting themagazine 20 to be pushed upwardly within the receiving section 39.Eventually, the intermediate side wall 80 flexes outwardly as the topportion 82 thereof abuts and is pushed outwardly from the downwardlyextending flange 84 of the receiving section 39, thus resilientlylocking the magazine 20 within the receiving section 39. The pellets 72are loaded on top of the surface 86 below and against which the spring71 presses. As a pellet 72 is loaded and pushed downwardly, the topportion 82 normally restrains the pellet from moving upwardly. As themagazine is inserted within the receiving section, the top portion 82 isflexed outwardly, as previously explained, thus permitting the pellets72 to move upwardly under the influence of the spring 71 as soon as thedischarge nozzle 30 is withdrawn to the position illustrated in FIG. 3.The resilient flap 90 forming the top of the section 39 bears gentlyagainst the pellet 72 until it is moved forward into the rearwardsection of the barrel 14, as illustrated in FIG. 4.

We claim:

l. A toy air gun, comprising:

a casing; I

a chamber provided within said casing;

a trigger mechanism mounted to said casing and provided with a latchingmechanism;

a slide mechanism operatively mounted to said casa barrel having one endthereof extending within said casing adjacent said chamber;

a magazine detachably mounted to said casing, a plurality of pelletslocated within said magazine, and means feeding said pellets from saidmagazine to said chamber of said casing;

a hollow cylinder having a forward end thereof provided with a dischargenozzle, said nozzle being in communication with the interior of saidcylinder, means mounting said cylinder for sliding movement within saidcasing between a first position wherein the forward end of said nozzleis positioned rearwardly of the position wherein said pellets are fedinto said chamber and a second position where the forward end of saidnozzle extends within said chamber, and a spring operatively connectedat one end thereof to said cylinder and at the other end thereof to saidcasing for normally urging said cylinder and discharge nozzle forwardlyto said second position;

a piston terminating forwardly in a wall, said piston being positionedwithin said cylinder, means mounting said piston for sliding movementbetween a first position wherein said latching mechanism of said triggermechanism grips said piston holding same and a second position whereinsaid wall of said piston is in the general vicinity of the forward endof said cylinder adjacent said nozzle, and means normally urging saidpiston forwardly to said second position; and

means operatively connecting said slide mechanism and said cylinder suchthat as said slide mechanism is pulled rearwardly said cylinder is movedto its said first position during which time said cylinder engages saidpiston forcing said piston to its said first position after which saidcylinder returns to its said second position, the operation of saidtrigger mechanism thereafter releasing said latching mechanism and saidpiston permitting said piston to move forward within said cylinderforcing the air normally contained therein through said discharge nozzlepropelling said pellet through said barrel.

2. A toy air gun as in claim 1, wherein said piston is hollow, saidmeans providing said piston for sliding movement comprises a guidelocated within said casing and extending within said piston, and whereinsaid means normally urging said piston forward to said second positioncomprises a spring positioned within said piston and interposed betweenthe end of said guide and said forward wall of said piston.

3. A toy air gun as in claim 1, wherein said magazine terminatesupwardly in guide members, a receiving section mounted within saidcasing, said receiving section being provided with a slot generallycomplementary in configuration with respect to said guide members ofsaid magazine permitting said magazine to be inserted within saidreceiving section, said receiving section defining said chamber of saidcasing.

4. In a toy air gun provided with a casing within which is located achamber, a barrel extending within said casing to said chamber, and atrigger mechanism and slide mechanism operatively connected to saidcasing, a propulsion unit for propelling pellets positioned within saidchamber, comprising a hollow cylinder having a forward end thereofprovided with a discharge nozzle, means mounting said cylinder forsliding movement within said casing, a spring operatively connected atone end thereof to said cylinder and at the other end thereof to saidcasing for normally urging said cylinder forwardly within said casing toa position wherein the forward end of said nozzle extends within saidchamber, a piston positioned within said cylinder and provided with ahollow portion, a guide located within said casing and extending withinsaid hollow portion of said piston, and a spring located within thehollow portion of said piston and interposed between the end of saidguide and said forward wall of said piston for normally urging saidpiston forwardly within said cyinder, means operatively connecting saidslide mechanism to said cylinder such that as said slide mechanism ismoved rearwardly said cylinder is moved :rearwardly thereafter engagingsaid piston forcing said piston to move rearwardly eventually lockingsaid piston by said trigger mechanism, after which said cylinder movesforwardly such that said nozzle thereof extends into said chamberengaging one of said pellets and moving said pellet into said barrel,the subsequent actuation of said trigger mechanism releasing said pistonto move forwardly within said cylinder forcing the air normallycontained therein through said discharge nozzle propelling said pelletthrough said barrel.

5. A toy air gun as in claim 1, wherein each of said pellets includes acone-shaped rear portion adjacent said discharge nozzle of said hollowcylinder when said hollow cylinder is in said second position such thatafter the operation of said trigger mechanism the air passing throughsaid discharge nozzle is directed towards said cone-shaped portion ofsaid pellet.

1. A toy air gun, comprising: a casing; a chamber provided witHin saidcasing; a trigger mechanism mounted to said casing and provided with alatching mechanism; a slide mechanism operatively mounted to saidcasing; a barrel having one end thereof extending within said casingadjacent said chamber; a magazine detachably mounted to said casing, aplurality of pellets located within said magazine, and means feedingsaid pellets from said magazine to said chamber of said casing; a hollowcylinder having a forward end thereof provided with a discharge nozzle,said nozzle being in communication with the interior of said cylinder,means mounting said cylinder for sliding movement within said casingbetween a first position wherein the forward end of said nozzle ispositioned rearwardly of the position wherein said pellets are fed intosaid chamber and a second position where the forward end of said nozzleextends within said chamber, and a spring operatively connected at oneend thereof to said cylinder and at the other end thereof to said casingfor normally urging said cylinder and discharge nozzle forwardly to saidsecond position; a piston terminating forwardly in a wall, said pistonbeing positioned within said cylinder, means mounting said piston forsliding movement between a first position wherein said latchingmechanism of said trigger mechanism grips said piston holding same and asecond position wherein said wall of said piston is in the generalvicinity of the forward end of said cylinder adjacent said nozzle, andmeans normally urging said piston forwardly to said second position; andmeans operatively connecting said slide mechanism and said cylinder suchthat as said slide mechanism is pulled rearwardly said cylinder is movedto its said first position during which time said cylinder engages saidpiston forcing said piston to its said first position after which saidcylinder returns to its said second position, the operation of saidtrigger mechanism thereafter releasing said latching mechanism and saidpiston permitting said piston to move forward within said cylinderforcing the air normally contained therein through said discharge nozzlepropelling said pellet through said barrel.
 2. A toy air gun as in claim1, wherein said piston is hollow, said means providing said piston forsliding movement comprises a guide located within said casing andextending within said piston, and wherein said means normally urgingsaid piston forward to said second position comprises a springpositioned within said piston and interposed between the end of saidguide and said forward wall of said piston.
 3. A toy air gun as in claim1, wherein said magazine terminates upwardly in guide members, areceiving section mounted within said casing, said receiving sectionbeing provided with a slot generally complementary in configuration withrespect to said guide members of said magazine permitting said magazineto be inserted within said receiving section, said receiving sectiondefining said chamber of said casing.
 4. In a toy air gun provided witha casing within which is located a chamber, a barrel extending withinsaid casing to said chamber, and a trigger mechanism and slide mechanismoperatively connected to said casing, a propulsion unit for propellingpellets positioned within said chamber, comprising a hollow cylinderhaving a forward end thereof provided with a discharge nozzle, meansmounting said cylinder for sliding movement within said casing, a springoperatively connected at one end thereof to said cylinder and at theother end thereof to said casing for normally urging said cylinderforwardly within said casing to a position wherein the forward end ofsaid nozzle extends within said chamber, a piston positioned within saidcylinder and provided with a hollow portion, a guide located within saidcasing and extending within said hollow portion of said piston, and aspring located within the hollow portion of said piston and interposedbetween the end of said guide and said forward wall of saId piston fornormally urging said piston forwardly within said cyinder, meansoperatively connecting said slide mechanism to said cylinder such thatas said slide mechanism is moved rearwardly said cylinder is movedrearwardly thereafter engaging said piston forcing said piston to moverearwardly eventually locking said piston by said trigger mechanism,after which said cylinder moves forwardly such that said nozzle thereofextends into said chamber engaging one of said pellets and moving saidpellet into said barrel, the subsequent actuation of said triggermechanism releasing said piston to move forwardly within said cylinderforcing the air normally contained therein through said discharge nozzlepropelling said pellet through said barrel.
 5. A toy air gun as in claim1, wherein each of said pellets includes a cone-shaped rear portionadjacent said discharge nozzle of said hollow cylinder when said hollowcylinder is in said second position such that after the operation ofsaid trigger mechanism the air passing through said discharge nozzle isdirected towards said cone-shaped portion of said pellet.